I Love Fall October 17 2018

Although summer is my favorite season and this summer was gorgeous, I love the Fall season almost as much.  

Clear blue skies, crisp leaves falling, pumpkins in the farmers' markets, juicy apples, the smell of cinnamon and spices when making pies and ducks enjoying a swim in a cool, blue pond close to where I live.

This is the time to pay a visit to a pumpkin patch or farmer's market to chose a pumpkin that you want to carve out for Halloween or go to an apple orchard to pick ripe apples or maybe just take a drive through the country to look at the beautiful changing foliage which is starting to turn right now.  

People are starting to think about the holidays and are already making plans on who is coming over for Thanksgiving dinner, what to make for dinner or where they are going for Christmas and how they are celebrating it this year.

Some are staying home raking the falling leaves, changing the summer pastel flowers in the planters to some bright bold colored mums, doing things that need to be done around the house now that the weather is cooler or just relaxing and enjoying decorating their home for Fall and the holidays.  

Now is the time to think about changing out the closet, put away the pretty summer pastel colors and replacing them with warmer clothes which will be needed soon such as a warm robe or nightgown.

Here are some suggestions for keeping warm this Fall and winter season!

REPOSTED BLOG FROM SEPT 2009 - END OF SUMMER AND THE START OF FALL October 15 2016

Here is an old blog of mine from September 18, 2009 which I will re-post as it fits this time of year.

When I got up this morning for the first time in many, many months, I could feel the change in the air in Arizona.  It is usually so hot here that it is unbearable but this morning, there was a cool, soft, gentle breeze.  My little dog was outside and he hates to come in whether it is hot or cool and I could tell this morning that he noticed a difference as he sniffed the air with his little nose stuck up and would have loved to stay longer as I wished we could.

You can see the subtle changes in the vegetation, the sky and the air when September comes.  It is not like when I lived in the midwest where it was more obvious with the impending cooler weather.  There, the leaves would start turning from green to brilliant reds, rusts and golds.  Soon they would start falling from the trees leaving them almost bare-like skeletons.  I remember usually the first week in September, it was cool, the days turned considerably shorter and the kids were back in school.  People were already thinking ahead to Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and what to do for the holidays.

It was time to get out the sweaters and jackets and one almost always needed one when going out in the evening.  Football games, bonfires, wienie roasts and various school functions all come to mind when Fall approaches and I miss that from my childhood.

 It is a bit different here in Arizona since we do not get the great change in the seasons as a lot of states have but I can tell Fall is coming in other ways.  I look out on the lake behind the house – the water is rippling from the cool breeze and sparkling like diamonds and the ducks have now returned to float lazily on the cool blue water.  I love watching them paddling on the water and especially watching when they come in like a jet plane to make a big splash on the lake and join their friends who have already arrived ahead of them.  They don’t have a care in the world and never worry about sinking in the water or failing.  They are really an inspiration to mankind.  They know they can do it and it’s just wonderful to watch them.  When I see them, I know Fall is not far behind.

 A lot of us have already started thinking about moving the summer clothes out of the closet and adding more fall-like items like some lightweight sweaters and slacks instead of the pretty hot pink and lime colors of our clothes in summer.  You hate to see those pretty feminine colors go but you know they will be back next year and in the meantime, darker colors that we all love, especially black which has always been a favorite of everyone for many reasons.  Not only does it make one look a lot slimmer, including me, but it is very sophisticated and mysterious and one always looks so elegant in it.  It is one of the colors that men like best on women and it is definitely one of my favorites!

I love the pastel peignoirs, nightgowns and sets as they are always basics to our lingerie wardrobe but it is nice to add a few darker jewel-tone colors as well.  Unfortunately, as far as the vintage nightgowns and peignoir sets go, they are not easy to find and have been much harder to find in the past years.

The pastels dominate the peignoir sets which is fine because they are always so feminine but it is always nice to add a couple of the other bolder shades.

Olga is one of the few vintage manufacturers that produced the deeper jewel-tone shades in nightgowns, peignoirs and peignoir sets and she has always been one of my favorites for her spandex lace nightgowns’ fit which is loved by so many.  Plus, her darker shades of nightgowns are just gorgeous although difficult to find.

Here is a small sampling of jewel-tone Olga nightgowns and set which are shown under “Nightgowns – Vintage” and “Peignoir Sets – Vintage.”

Now is also the time to think of a nice warm robe which will be pure luxury to put on for those cold rainy nights when coming home from a hard day of work.  It’s funny how as soon as you change your clothes and put on one of your beautiful robes or peignoir and gown sets, you immediately feel revived and beautiful.

The most luxurious robe that you can buy is the fabulous Diamond Tea robes which are my very favorite together with the vintage late ‘60s / early ‘70s quilted robes from Hong Kong. 

 A few luxurious Diamond Tea velvet velour robes:

As I always say when describing one of those fabulous quilted robes “I remember when I was growing up that I wanted one of those expensive quilted robes from Hong Kong but there was just no way that it was possible as they were very expensive and sols only at the very finest stores like I. Magnin, Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, etc.  Now many, many years later, I have a very large collection of these beautiful robes in various gorgeous colors.”

 Here is just a small example of a few of those wonderful vintage quilted robes from Hong Kong shown under “Sleep – Robes and Dressing Gowns.”

These robes are such easy care and the majority are washable and they come out of the dryer looking beautiful.  What more could one ask?

That is what vintage lingerie does – it makes one look beautiful and transports one back to the glamorous days of the ’50, ‘60s and ‘70s and that is why I love it as much as I do!

Fall is Coming May 18 2016

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY January 26 2016

HAVE A WONDERFUL THANKSGIVING November 19 2015

There is so much to be grateful for - family, friends, pets, all the good that has been received by each of us and for being able to live in the U.S.A

I am so grateful for all of my wonderful customers!

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SOME FUN THANKSGIVING FACTS

 

Total number of Turkeys that are consumed on Thanksgiving Day
51,150,000

Total U.S. spending on Thanksgiving dinner food
$2,875,000,000

Average household spending on Thanksgiving dinner
$56.18

Average household spending on Thanksgiving weekend
$312

Number of families that will travel for Thanksgiving
39,000,000

Number of places in the U.S. named Plymouth
37

Average cost per pound of Turkey
$1.15

 

Happy Halloween! October 20 2015

I lived in a very small town of 500 when I was growing up in Illinois.  It was an ideal childhood and it was very much like the TV shows "The Andy Griffith Show" and  “Happy Days” and others similar to that.

 

 

 

 

 

Our little town had a beautiful new grade school and a old majestic looking high school along with a gorgeous 2- story library and looking back on that, I can appreciate those buildings being built for such a small town as ours.

 

 

 

 

In addition to that, we had excellent & such dedicated teachers that did such a wonderful job teaching us what we needed to learn and it was such a good education and I am amazed when I look back on that and think of all of that came from such a small farming town.

 

 

 

 

But obviously, the parents wanted their children to have an excellent education and it can be seen by the schools and library and education that we received.  They took very good care of the children in our town.  I never really thought much about it until I started writing this blog and I started looking back on how things used to be for us and how things are today and how the parents of that community watched out for their children and their community in that small town.

 

 

 

 

I still remember that we would celebrate holidays at school such as Memorial Day when all members of the school band would go to the cemetery for a program to honor the men and women who served in the Armed Forces and the band would play and it would be a large part of the program.

 

 

 

 

But what comes to mind since it is October is how Halloween was celebrated in our town.  The high school would arrange a Halloween Party for all of us which kept us all together at a fun party in the gym and eliminated the children from maybe being out on the streets and causing some minor misdeeds.

 

 

 

 

We bobbed for apples, participated in a lot of fun games with prizes, had a lot of laughs with our friends and had refreshments and all in all had a great time together for a whole evening.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I know things are different nowadays for a lot of children as they go out and like to go trick and treating but we enjoyed the simple planned events by the school and the parents knew where we were and we were safe plus we all had a lot of fun with our classmates.  I wouldn’t trade all of those memories from so long ago for all the candy I could get going around trick or treating in a neighborhood nowadays.

 

 

 

 

Whatever you do this Halloween, have fun and be safe!

 

 

 

 

Why Do People Like Vintage Clothes? October 02 2015

I have been asked in the past “What do you like about vintage clothes & lingerie?”  I tell them “Everything!” 

The quality of the workmanship, the styles, the elaborate trims and decorations which manufacturers no longer use, the expensive bound buttonholes on a dress or robe, the yards & yards of flowing sheer nylon in peignoir sets, the exquisite fabrics used in nightgowns, etc.

I could go on and on but the best part of vintage is that it is a journey into the past.  It takes you from this busy often mundane world of today back to the day when things were slower and nicer and much prettier than today.  It makes you remember when you wore that beautiful prom dress to your Senior prom or the Winter Formal that everyone was dying to go to.  Also, that wonderful evening that you had with that dreamboat when he finally asked you out and you wore that beautiful dress that you talked your mother into getting for you.  Those days are gone forever but they can be relived over again when wearing a vintage outfit or dress.

It reminds you of when you smell a certain perfume that you wore on a special night like Fame, Arpege or Chanel No. 5 or any of those luscious scents that one rarely smells nowadays and many that have disappeared altogether.  All of a sudden so many of those memories come rushing back into your mind like it was yesterday - what you wore that night, what was said, where you went, what you did and all of the fun you had.  It transports you back to yesteryear and brings back so many wonderful memories of a good time you had when women looked so much more beautiful, elegant and fashionable than today.

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 That is why women love vintage clothing.  It brings back all of the good memories that you had tucked away and forgotten for so many decades.  And it enables one to relive even for a short time some of those wonderful memories and dreams that we all have from bygone years.

True vintage women's clothing have qualities that “vintage style”, “knock off vintage”, “retro-look”, “vintage inspired” and “vintage reproductions” do not have.  All of those clothes no matter if they are cute are no more than reproductions, knock offs and imitations of the real thing - true bona fide vintage clothing.  It is not the genuine item and consequently does not have the same value or quality or style as an original vintage dress or piece of lingerie.  That is why an authentic vintage nightgown, peignoir set, dress or evening gown will cost more and have more value to it as well as the fabulous quality and workmanship that we all remember and loved from those many years ago and which have lasted for over 65 years & more.

The majority of the beautiful vintage sleepwear including nightgowns, peignoir sets and women’s dresses were made by manufacturers in the United States although some did come from France and Italy from their top designers there but NEVER from China or any third world country as is happening today.  That is the reason you cannot find quality in "reproductions" or “retro-styles” or "vintage inspired" items. 

First of all there is no quality in the item, they are cheaply made, they are cut extremely small and not suited for women sizes in the U.S.  What is labeled a size 3 XXX will not even fit a U.S. size 6! Although the style may look cute, the item never has the quality workmanship that vintage clothing has that was made in in the United States in the ’50s, '60s, '70s & '80s and that is the reason so many women love vintage clothes.

Not only are you buying American products when you buy vintage clothing manufactured in the United States which is wonderful and important for our country and our economy but you are recycling at the same time.